DESIGNING A CURRICULUM-BASED K-12 (4TH AND 5TH GRADE) GEOLOGY/PALEONTOLOGY CAMP FOR FLORISSANT FOSSIL BEDS NATIONAL MONUMENT, COLORADO

Establishing an inclusive and participatory environment for people of different backgrounds, perspectives, thoughts and beliefs is a challenge public land agencies face today. The National Park Service seeks to increase not only the diversity of visitors, but also employees, through various programs such as Every-Kid-In-A-Park and MOSAICS In Science. At Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, under the MOSAICS In Science program, we have designed a curriculum-based 5-day geology/paleontology camp for fourth and fifth grade students using Colorado Academic State Standards for Science in order to reach underserved audiences from the surrounding area. The purpose of the camp is to engage students from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, both rural and urban, in hands-on-science activities and expose them to ethics promoting conservation and preservation of public lands. Curriculum learning objectives are for students to be able to: 1) explain processes that break down or form rocks, 2) understand how fossils are used as evidence to interpret past environments, and 3) identify how geologic forces change Earth’s surface. Two local school districts, located in socioeconomically disadvantaged communities of central Colorado, were invited to select students to attend the camp. Full implementation of the camp is expected in summer 2018, yet many of the camp activities are currently being tested. Consistent testing throughout summer 2017 produced results that led us to make several significant changes to the camp curriculum and mission. We determined that camp activities should also incorporate third grade science standards to reinforce incoming fourth graders science learning outcomes from third grade. We also decided that participation of students’ parents is pertinent if Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument expects to see an increase in visitor diversity. Thus, the last day of camp implements a conservation theme with a fee-waived entrance for parents to attend. Reaching both youth and adults from socioeconomically disadvantaged communities is key to the mission of the camp and the National Park Service. Future work will include teacher input on curriculum and testing with strictly fourth and fifth grade students in the fall.